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Psalmanazar, George,
1679?-1763
An Historical and Geographical Description of Formosa.
Giving an Account of the Religion, Customs, Manners, &c., of the Inhabitants.
London: Printed for M. Wotton [etc.], 1705. |
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“George Psalmanazar” (pseud.; real
name unknown), was a Frenchman whose colorful and adventurous career included
posing as a Japanese, and later as a Formosan. With his talent for languages
Psalmanazar was able to fabricate a “Formosan” language, and
give detailed descriptions of “his country”, most which was
gleaned from books or simply made-up. In his time, the spread of geographical
knowledge obliged him to contend with critics who were in a position to
deny what he wrote; he dealt with them, in a later edition, by sticking
haughtily to his guns and conceding nothing. The book derives in part from
Varenius’s Descriptio RegniJaponiae et Saim, and Candidus’s
Voyages. Psalmanazar became a celebrity, taken up by Sir Hans Sloane and
other members of the Royal Society. |
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